Hi! I'm Miss Franklin, and I'm honoured to take over from Mrs Bunn whilst she is on maternity leave. I'm really excited to be teaching in Year 3 and exploring new topics with you!

    When I'm not at school, I'm often out for coffee with friends, playing mini golf or watching the rugby or football. I'm a Bath Rugby fan, and an Arsenal football fan! 

 

Other staff working in our class are:

Miss Keyes – Teaching assistant

Our Weekly Timetable:

 

Important dates for the diary this term for Bluebird Class:

PE – Every Friday

Our learning this term:

This term we are learning all about ‘Settlements: Home or Away?’. The children will be finding out about different parts of the UK and working on their map-reading skills in order to locate towns, cities, counties and regions.

This term in English we will explore ‘James and the Giant Peach’ by Roald Dahl. We will be writing character descriptions using a range of adjectives and adverbs to create an effect. We will also be writing diary entries from James’ point of view as he travels inside the peach. Additionally, we will be developing our use of speech when writing a news report with eyewitness accounts.  

 

In maths, we will be learning about money, shape and statistics. The children will learn to count money and find change. Maybe you could practise these skills at home or while out shopping! We will then move on to shape; identifying and naming 2D and 3D shapes and learning about angles. Finally, they will learn how to collect and represent data using bar charts and pictograms.

 

In science, we will be learning more about plants. The children will carry out an experiment to see if seeds need soil to grow well by ‘planting’ seeds in different materials. They will find out about the names of different parts of a flower by dissecting real flowers and will learn all about pollination and why bees are so important to us!  

 

In R. E, we will be learning about ‘Humanism’. We will explore our big question: What are Humanists, and what do they value?

 

 

The children will continue to develop their German vocabulary, including speaking, reading and writing about their likes and dislikes. As we end the year, they will revisit all the learning from this year; greetings, colours, numbers, days and months and body parts. 

 

 

Learning at home for Bluebird Class: 

Children are expected to read every night for at least 15 minutes.  Please spend time each day listening to your child read as it really does have a positive impact on their progress. Remember to sign your child’s reading record book when they have read to you.

When your child has finished an AR book, they can complete the quiz. We are focussing on quizzing accuracy.

It is important that reading books and reading record books are in school every day even if your child hasn’t read.

Please remember that you can access Times Tables Rock Stars (TTRS), Numbots and Spelling Shed from home. There are certificates and a trophy for the winning class and individual certificates for the child that scores the most points each week. Spelling assignments will be given out each week, which support the spelling curriculum that your child will be following in school.

You will find your login details in the front of your child’s reading record book.

 

 

Be ready for learning!

In Bluebirds Class, your child will need to have these items in school: 

• PE kit (to be worn on PE day) 
• Water bottle with sports cap lid (no squash or juice) 
• Small rucksack (big enough to hold lunchbox and reading books) 
• Wellington boots (to leave in school) 
• Coat (weather appropriate) 

Please don’t bring other items into school, as we do not have space to store them, and it can cause upset if things are lost or damaged. 

 

School uniform checklist:

Please, please, please check that all items of school uniform and PE kit are clearly named, as it can be upsetting for the children and frustrating for parents and teachers when clothes go ‘missing’. Don’t forget to check regularly as names can fade easily in the wash!

Snacks

Please note that in KS2, children do not receive snack for break times.

If your child would like a snack, please feel free to send them in with a piece of fruit in their bag that they can eat in morning break! Grapes should be cut in half lengthways please.

Highlights from Term 4

        

       

Highlights from Term 3

We really enjoyed creating our impressionist art paintings inspired by Claude Monet. It was wonderful to see so many parents/carers at the KS2 Art Exhibition.

In science we were learning about animals including humans. The children tested their reaction times and also investigated how leg length correlated with distance that they could jump!

Another highlight was our Egyptian day! We were able to make our very own crowns and bracelets so that we really looked the part.

Of course, both classes in Year 3 also enjoyed our King’s breakfast trip!

Highlights from Term 2:

In science we were learning about rocks. The children tested rocks to see how hardwearing they were by scratching them, and if they were permeable or impermeable by dropping water on them using a pipette.

We took our learning outside when we made our own volcanoes on the field and made them ‘erupt’ by adding bicarbonate of soda, vinegar, read colouring and washing up liquid. We also looked at the different types of soil that are around our school grounds.

We had a visit from the Kent Road Safety team and practised finding safer places to cross the road. Kingfishers all know that they need to Stop, Look, Listen, Think and Hold Hands with and adult before they cross the road.

In DT lessons we practised our sewing skills. The children looked at existing products before designing and making a Christmas cushion. Their designs were impressive and they showed great skill when using running and backstitch to add decoration to the cushions.

We also had a great time at our Christmas party on the last day of term! We played all the party classics including pass the parcel, musical statues and we even had a dance competition!

Highlights from Term 1

We really enjoyed our Durovernum topic, learning all about why the Romans invaded and how they changed Canterbury. On our Hook Day we all made Roman helmets.

In Science, we learnt about forces and magnets. The children did an experiment to find out which surfaces had more or less friction and had lots of fun investigating how magnets attract and repel.

We took our learning outside for one of our art lessons. The children used viewfinders and sketched trees inspired by the work of Luke Adam Hawker.

We had a great day on our trip. At the Roman Museum the children had a Roman technology workshop, made their own replica Roman coins, used catapults to know down a brick wall and had fun dressing up!

At the Beaney we looked at some real and replica Roman artefacts, sketched them and thought about what they might be used for.